The history of the hospital
The Hospital for the Nervous and Mentally Ill is commonly known as the Hospital in Kocborów or Kocborowo. Kocborowo is an old two-part name, in which “koc” meant old Slavonic mud, and “bór” – forest. Indeed, the estate was largely located on a wetland, wooded area, requiring the construction of buildings on field foundations.
In the studies, among others of the German researcher of the Nazi era, Kocborowo used to be called Stary Starogard (Alte Stargardt, Bevolkerungsgeschichte des Reichsgames Danzing Westpreussen).
In 1893. XVI West Prussian Sejmik on April 7 decided to build a psychiatric facility in Kocborów for 1000 patients, with the possibility of expanding up to 1600 patients. This decision was caused by the ever-increasing needs in terms of caring for the mentally ill, and the two psychiatric institutions in Świecie and Wejherowo at that time did not sufficiently satisfy these needs.
The location of the plant in Kocborów was influenced not only by the appropriate space needed for its development, but also by the location of the town in the center of the province of West Prussia, near the main double-track railway line “East” with connections in all directions.
Design and cost-estimate documentation was prepared under the supervision of an architect Harnisch, following the model at the end of the 19th century. In Prussia, a network of psychiatric hospitals was built.